/*
 * Copyright (C) 2007-2012 by XDEV Software, All Rights Reserved.
 *
 * This library is free software; you can redistribute it and/or
 * modify it under the terms of the GNU Lesser General Public
 * License version 3.0 as published by the Free Software Foundation.
 *
 * This library is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
 * but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
 * MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
 * GNU General Public License for more details.
 *
 * You should have received a copy of the GNU Lesser General Public
 * License along with this program; if not, write to the Free Software
 * Foundation, Inc., 59 Temple Place - Suite 330, Boston, MA  02111-1307, USA.
 */
 
package xdev;


import java.util.Map;


/**
 * An extension of the XDEV Application Framework.
 * <p>
 * It is instantiated before the {@link Application} is started.
 * 
 * @see Application#initApplication()
 * @see Application#getExtension(String)
 * @see Application#getExtensions()
 * 
 * @author XDEV Software
 * @since 3.0
 */
public interface Extension
{
	/**
	 * Called in the {@link Application}s init routine.
	 * 
	 * @throws ExtensionInitializationException
	 *             if an error occurs or dependencies of the extension are not
	 *             fulfilled
	 */
	public void init(Map<String, String> args) throws ExtensionInitializationException;
	

	/**
	 * Returns the name of this extension.
	 * 
	 * @return the name of this extension
	 */
	public String getName();
	

	/**
	 * Returns the version of this extension.
	 * 
	 * @return the version of this extension
	 */
	public Version getVersion();
}
